What's In A Name?
by Skye-Blue 101
Summary: AH- It's senior year and Alice has pushed Bella to do something that terrified her. You see, Bella is an aspiring actress- with stage fright and Alice has put her name on the sign up sheet for the spring production- Romeo and Juliet. Bella's crush, Edward, the delinquent of Forks High, just so happens to have signed up as well. Will true feelings come out? And what's Edward hiding?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N- When we read Romeo and Juliet in my English class, this just happened to pop into my head. It just WOUD NOT leave me alone, and I had to write it down. I'm trying something a little different this time with it being all human, so I hope it turns out right.**

I couldn't force Alice to stop bouncing, which, in itself, I suppose, was nothing new. I had known it the second I woke up this morning, and checked my calendar, that she would be just about as hyper as the Energizer Bunny on steroids.

She had picked me up that morning in her canary yellow Porsche- a sweet sixteen gift from her parents. That car was her most prized possession, and the only thing she managed to keep for the better part of two years. That one surprised all of us, as she was always looking for the next best thing, however she could upgrade her things, she did so accordingly, be it a new phone, or the latest fads in fashion, whatever it was, she had to have it. It was a wonder she didn't drain her parents dry.

It was seven fifteen when she rolled out of my driveway. She was wearing jeans, designer, no doubt, a deep red halter top, her favorite black leather jacket, and matching high heeled boots. Her hair was spiked out in a halo around her head, and her make-up was perfect, as per usual. She tried to dress me up, _again_, but I politely declined, siding instead with my faded jeans, Linkin Park concert tee, and a pair of flats. She had scowled at that, but eventually let it go.

"So Bella," She started, barely containing her enthusiasm. "Are you excited?" She was practically vibrating in her seat now, and I briefly wondered how much coffee she had consumed today. I eyed her travel mug wearily. It sat in its usual place in the driver's side cup holder, filled to the top with scalding hot caffeine.

"More nervous than anything; I feel like I'm going to lose my breakfast, Alice."

"You'll do great, Bella," Her blue eyes flickered from the road for a brief moment to smile encouragingly at me.

I really wished that I could believe her, I mean, we had been friends since second grade, and not once in ten years, had she been wrong. It scared me at times, how precise she could be. It was almost as if she could see the future, but then again, that was just Alice. I was used to it by now. Still, I had my doubts.

"I don't know Alice. What if I forget my lines? I don't even know what scene the audition will be. What if I freeze on stage? What if I vomit on Ms. Williams?" Maybe I was taking it a bit too far. It was unlikely that any one of those things would happen, but, knowing me, the accident prone klutz, anything was possible.

Alice rolled her eyes at me, laughing. She was _laughing_. "Be realistic, Bella," She chided. "You know every word in the play. You've had nothing to eat in the past fifteen hours," She frowned at this. "I know you want this very much. You won't freeze up. You'll know what to do."

We lapsed into a comfortable silence as I mulled over her words. Alice Cullen had more faith in me than anyone. She was the one who had pushed me to audition for the lead in the school's spring production- Romeo and Juliet. Alice was one of a select few that knew of my secret passion. I absolutely loved acting. It was something, the only thing I could imagine doing with my life. I was just too shy to take that first step, to get over my fears. Those fears were silly though, and Alice knew it. That is why, as of two days ago, my name was printed neatly on the sign-up sheet taped to the door of the black box theater.

My eyes closed on their own accord, and I tried desperately to calm myself. I could do this. Alice believed in me. Alice was never wrong. I concentrated on my breathing. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. By the time I had calmed down considerably, I found that we were already in Forks high school's tiny parking lot, wedged in between a familiar red BMW M3, and Jeep.

The rest of our small circle of friends was waiting for us next to their vehicles. Jasper was sitting in the passenger side of his sister's convertible, waiting for Alice, no doubt. The two of them had been together since eighth grade, when the Hales moved here from New York. Alice's burly bear of a brother, Emmett was facing the back of his car, holding Rosalie against it as they kissed ferociously.

When we exited the Porsche, Emmett looked up, seemingly embarrassed. I didn't mind them though. Every one of us knew that Emmett Cullen was smitten with Rose from the moment he laid eyes on her.

Thankfully, I didn't fall on my face as I exited the car, like I had done yesterday. I fallowed Alice over to the convertible where she embraced Jasper, and they proceeded to talk eagerly about everything, and nothing. Alice and Jasper were strange like that. Even when there was nothing to talk about, they still wound up talking, just to hear the sound of the other's voice; just to be close.

After a moment, Alice mentioned something about the play, and Jasper's eyes moved to me. "Don't worry about it," he said to me, and I could automatically feel my nerves calm. Jasper was absolutely amazing when it came to calming people down. "You'll do great." I nodded to him, not really believing him though. He wasn't able to comment on my obvious lack of confidence, as the bell rang before he could get the words out.

The day progressed rather slowly, much to my dismay. I was already nervous, and now I couldn't concentrate on any of my classes. Each period, I would sit in the back of the room, reading over various parts of the play. In Spanish, the teacher had to repeat the question four times before I understood what he was saying, and was able to form a simple Spanish sentence in reply. I could hear giggles from the front of the room at that. P.E. was a blur of bruises and failed attempts to try. Fun. I spent trigonometry in a daze, this time, not due to my lack of understanding.

By the time lunch rolled around, all I wanted to do was sleep. I had so much Romeo and Juliet stuck in my head, it was a wonder anything else would fit.

The cafeteria was crowded when I finally got there. I made my way over to the line, which was way too long. After ten minutes, I was able to grab a salad. At that point, I happily skittered away. Hopefully my friends would let me take a nap, and not keep me up with all of their chatter.

I gently put my head down on the table, resting my cheek on the cold surface. "Bella?" Came a voice next to me.

"Let me sleep, Alice." I mumbled to her.

"You know, you've really got to get over this." She stated, and I could imagine a pout that was so cute, it hurt to look at, had covered her face. "I know you're nervous, but you don't need to be. You'll do great," I thought she was done, but then she started again. "And anyways, the spring production is nothing to lose sleep over."

"Speak for yourself," I shot back. There was a reason my love of acting was a secret. I had stage fright. It wasn't very bad, but it was there. How ironic. I was the world's first stage fright actor. It didn't make a lot of sense. Acting was my passion, and yet, it also scared the crap out of me on most days. Because of that, I hadn't managed to get a lot of sleep these last couple of days, ever since Alice put my name on the sign-up sheet.

It was silent for a moment before, "Bella,"

"What is it Alice?" I asked her grumpily.

"He's staring again," And that was all it took for me to bolt up straight, and uncharacteristically begin fixing my hair. Alice giggled. "You're so cute," My eyes roamed around the room until I found his shiny green ones. He was indeed looking at me. "You should go talk to him, Bella." She exclaimed happily. Rosalie nodded in agreement from the other side of the table.

"And say what, Alice?"

"Well, tell him you really like him. Ask him if he wants to go out."

"What do you think this is, kindergarten?" I shuddered, recalling that in kindergarten, Mike Newton, who is still a pain in my rump, followed me around everywhere, and insisted that I was his girlfriend.

"No," she said. "I think this is senior year, and you're running out of time."

I suppose she was right. I had harbored a major crush on Edward Masen, from the moment he moved to this little town in the beginning of soft more year. It was unrealistic, and I knew it. I was the shy book worm with only a handful of friends. He had practically been labeled the bad boy of Forks high. He never did his assignments; he only came to class when he felt like it; he only hung out with the popular kids, Mike, Tyler, Jessica, Lauren, Tanya, and a few others they deemed worthy to be included in their group. And to top it all off, his shiny black motorcycle was parked right outside the front office. I wondered how he pulled that one off.

"This is ridiculous, Alice," I retorted, shaking my head and turning away from the allure of his emerald eyes.

"Suit yourself." She quipped, ending the conversation.

I ate silently after that, disregarding Alice's words. How could I possibly listen to her? Edward was out of my league, in fact, it scared me just how impossible my fantasies seemed.

The bell rang shortly after that conversation, and I gathered up my things, muttered a goodbye to my friends, and headed to biology. It was my favorite period of the day for one reason only. Edward Masen was my lab partner.

We had spoken little to each other over the course of the year, yet I found that I knew a lot about him. I had seen, on more than one occasion, song lyrics and music notes in his notebook. Obviously, he was an artist. When he was in school, he paid meticulous attention; almost as if he was hoping to absorb as much information as he could before he disappeared again. I had asked him once, why he was out of school so often, and he shrugged, not looking up from his notebook. "Family problems."

On that day, I felt like I had been let in on a huge secret. Could that be the reason he acted the way he did? Was that why he didn't seem to care about anything? I wondered if I'd ever find out the truth, or if I did, how terrible that truth was.

Class was uneventful. Edward was there, but he didn't look up from his notebook. Just like every day. I managed to completely ignore him until the end of the period, taking extensive notes on a lesson I already knew. It was the epitome of monotony, but at least it kept my mind off of him.

Last period English was a free period. We had a substitute who obviously didn't belong here. The only thing he told us to do was 'study'. Right, because Ms. Campbell had nothing else for us to do. I spent my time again, with my head buried in my worn copy of Romeo and Juliet.

The shrill sound of the bell once again reminded me of my nerves. With it, came shaking hands, and a wildly erratic heart. I stumbled to my locker, brushing off my friends as they headed to the parking lot. With my books thrown carelessly into my locker, ready to be retrieved later, when Alice picked me up, I headed to the performing arts building.

When I got to the theater, I found that I line had formed near the side of the stage, where it looked like students were signing in. I quickly jumped in line, checking off my name with an unsteady hand when it was my turn.

I found myself a seat in the back, willing Ms. Williams to start the auditions. I watched as she made her way to the front of the room, her back to the stage, and proceeded to quiet us down. She smiled at us, making her opening speech about confidence and strength rather empowering. She told us at last that that supporting roles would begin the auditions, and the last two characters to be cast would be the leads. She also explained that the leads were to audition together, each Romeo auditioned with a Juliet. Whether or not a pair that tried out would be the same pair assigned to the roles was yet to be decided.

She started out simply, calling forward those who wanted the parts of Sampson, Gregory, and the other servants. When the end of those auditions came, there was a loud knock at the door, and then someone entered the theater. He walked down the aisle gracefully, handed a note to Ms. Williams at the end of it, who, in turn, frowned for a moment, and turned to find a seat in the audience.

Edward Masen was sitting not two chairs away from me, watching the people on stage.

I sat with bated breath, hyperaware of him. He sat back in the theater seat, his arms folded in front of his chest. He was wearing a simple grey tee shirt and dark washed jeans. His arms, which remained folded, were clad in leather. The jacket hung to his muscular arms, and made it nearly impossible to look away.

Still, I managed. Barely. I kept my eyes glued to the stage, as one by one, aspiring actors took the spotlight, to recite the words that have been remembered throughout centuries. It wasn't long though, before I felt someone's eyes on me. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Edward sneak a glance at me, in much the same fashion that I had been doing.

I blushed and looked down, embarrassed.

For the first time, I wondered what he was doing here. This was not a setting I would imagine him in on Friday afternoon. In fact, I'd imagine him outside of school plenty of times. It always peeked my curiosity as to where he went when he wasn't in class. I'd thought of things like bars and clubs. Things that required a fake ID.

But somehow, none of those things seemed to fit. I suppose no matter where he looked like he belonged, that didn't mean it was true. I thought back to all of the things I knew about him. He was an artist. He wrote music, and sketched. He was a very good student, when he was in class. He was out of class a lot. He didn't associate with his friends too often; like he was a loner no matter where he was, or what he was doing.

Then, there were other things. Things I'd learned outside of school. When he moved here two and a half years ago, I recalled that Charlie had spoken about him. He said that a new lawyer had moved to town with his son. Apparently, Mr. Masen was very accomplished, and had found a job in the little tourist trap known as Port Angeles. Charlie mentioned Mr. Masen's wife only once, explaining that the lawyer had escaped Chicago with his son just after his wife passed away. Though, I noticed that he made a strange face at the mention of the lawyer, as if he didn't quite trust the story of the happy rich man, and his son. He mentioned to me, on one occasion, that it bothered him, how little he really knew about Mr. Masen. One thing was for sure, I had never once seen him grieve for the loss of his wife.

Shorty after my mental investigations, all but the two main characters had been cast. After a few short minutes of silence, Ms. Williams stood up from her front row seat, and turned to face her audience.

"I've compiled a list of all of the Romeos and Juliets, and there just so happened to be an equal number of each," She whispered something to a student next to her, who then disappeared into the adjoining drama room. Moments later, I noticed the girl, Kayla return with a rolling white board. Ms. Williams then proceeded to copy down her list of names.

With each pair she wrote, I became more anxious. Who would I be paired with? Would I be comfortable with pretending that I was in love with him? Edward was still sitting there; what was he doing here? Surely he was not here to audition? And, if he was, the only roll left was Romeo. As the list began to grow larger, the possibility of my being paired with him grew as well.

Finally, Ms. Williams wrote out my name. I sat there, nearly holding my breath, as she wrote another name across from mine. My eyes widened when I could see his name sitting next to mine, and I quite liked the look of it there. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see something that I did not expect. Edward's eyes were locked on the board as well, and he was smiling. It wasn't just a little smirk, no; it was a full blown 'I Just Won The Lottery' type of grin. This confused me once again. I had seen his face when he walked in. He did _not _want to be here. How could _I _possibly change that?

For the first time since I met him, I wondered if it was at all possible for him to feel the same way about me. I had a huge crush, though Alice would call it an obsession, on him since the beginning, but it had never crossed my mind that he could feel the same for me in any way. Maybe Alice and Rose were right, maybe I didn't see myself clearly.

Whatever the case, Ms. Williams drew ever closer to where our names sat together at the end of the list. All the while Edward's beautiful, slightly crooked grin did not dissipate. I turned away from him then, to watch the others deliver their lines. It was then that I finally realized what scene she had chosen for us.

Each pair had to perform the most famous, and possibly the most romantic part of the play- the balcony scene. I vaguely recalled her explain to us that she wanted the lead characters to have some level of chemistry on stage so that it would be more believable. How was I ever going to do this? I already had stage fright, and now I had to profess my undying love to my crush, who may, or may not want anything to do with me.

At long last, it was our turn. I moved to the stage hesitantly, only tripping once. When we were both standing in front of Ms. Williams, she smiled to us, and asked if we would need scripts. I shook my head automatically, and he did as well. That surprised me. Ms. Williams reminded us to start at the beginning of the scene, and sat in her seat front and center, waiting for us to begin.

I looked over to Edward, and was surprised once again, to see the intensity in his eyes. So many emotions flitted across his face in a single instant. He was slightly nervous, it seemed, and I wondered why he would feel that way. He was the most confident person I knew. But that wasn't what caught my attention. He was staring at me like I was important, not just in general, which I didn't believe anyway, but important to him, specifically. Like he really cared about me. I realized that he did know an awful lot about me, due to the fact that I never could keep my mouth shut when I was around him. Maybe, like my friends seemed to believe, he really did care.

And then, he was speaking. He had such a perfect voice; smooth and soft, like honey, if it were at all possible for honey to be velvety, or maybe it was more like satin.

"He jests at scars that never felt a wound.  
But, soft! What light through yonder window breaks?  
It is the east, and Juliet is the sun."

Was it just me, or did he flinch at the word Juliet, as if he almost said another name?

"Arise, fair sun, and kill the envious moon,  
Who is already sick and pale with grief,  
That thou her maid art more fairer than she:"

His eyes were alight with something I could not name.

"Be not her maid, since she is envious;  
Her vestal livery is but sick and green  
And none but fools do wear it; cast it off.  
It is my lady, O, it is my love!"

The word sent shivers down my spine. Suddenly, as if hearing it had somehow made it more real, I could name the strange emotion I saw there, buried deep within his emerald eyes. It surprised me yet again, that such a thing were possible. Could it in any way be true that this man loved me? He knew me well enough, and I was practically his stalker. I internally grimaced, though I was sure he could tell. He didn't look at all surprised by the blush I knew was covering my cheeks.

"O, that she knew she were!"

Those six words held so much in them, it was impossible not to believe him.

"She speaks yet she says nothing: what of that?  
Her eye discourses; I will answer it.  
I am too bold, 'tis not to me she speaks:"

I was almost certain now, that he felt something for me.

"Two of the fairest stars in all the heaven,  
Having some business, do entreat her eyes  
To twinkle in their spheres till they return."

I felt myself blush again.

"What if her eyes were there, they in her head?  
The brightness of her cheek would shame those stars,  
As daylight doth a lamp; her eyes in heaven  
Would through the airy region stream so bright  
That birds would sing and think it were not night."

The way he spoke, it was so easy to believe he was speaking to me, and I desperately wished that were true.

"See, how she leans her cheek upon her hand!  
O, that I were a glove upon that hand,  
That I might touch that cheek!"

He then reached out slowly, cautiously, to trace my rosy cheek with one pale, perfect hand. The sensation was amazing- something I'd wanted for quite a while now. It was not so much that he was touching me, no; it was what happened when he did. A powerful jolt of electricity, though not unpleasant, wracked through my body.

"Ay me!"

The response was quiet, and breathy, and it had nothing to do with my acting skills.

"She speaks:  
O, speak again, bright angel! For thou art  
As glorious as the night, being o'er my head  
As a winged messenger of heaven  
Unto the white-upturned wondering eyes  
Of mortals that fall back to gaze on him  
When he bestrides the lazy, pacing clouds  
And sails upon the bosom of the air."

It seemed as if he was really speaking to _me _now, and not at all pretending that I was Juliet. It was a dream, a fool's paradise, that he should speak to me that way, as if I was an angel. The prospect of it was absurd. I was absolutely, completely ordinary.

"O Romeo, Romeo! Wherefore art thou Romeo?  
Deny thy father and refuse thy name:  
Or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,  
And I'll no longer be a Capulet."

He angled his head down slightly, to look at the floor.

"Shall I hear more, or shall I speak at this?"

"'Tis but thy name that is my enemy;  
Thou art thyself, though not a Montague.  
What's Montague? It is nor hand nor foot,  
Nor arm, nor face, nor any other part  
Belonging to a man. O, be some other name!  
What's in a name? That which we call a rose  
By any other name would smell as sweet;  
So Romeo would, were he not Romeo call'd,  
Retain that dear perfection which he owes  
Without that title, Romeo, doff thy name,  
And for that name which is no part of thee  
Take all myself."

In truth, those words were completely sincere. I liked him, a lot. But I was painfully aware that we were not meant to be together. Like Romeo and Juliet, we would only end in disaster. We were just too different. I hated it. And now, that it seemed like Edward might care for me, in the way that I cared for him, things were different; it was like everything was backwards, upside down, but at the same time, that was the way things were meant to be.

"I take thee at thy word:  
Call me but love, and I'll be new baptized;  
Henceforth, I never will be Romeo."

I wondered idly if he would change for me. It wasn't that I didn't like who he was, but I feared that his friends, and the life he had, would not agree with a new addition.

"What man art thou that thus bescreen'd in night  
So stumblest on my counsel?"

"By a name  
I know not how to tell thee who I am:  
My name, dear saint, is hateful to myself,  
Because it is an enemy to thee;  
Had I it written, I would tear the word."

He seemed so sincere, as if, again, he were not speaking to Juliet, but to me, to Bella.

"My ears have not yet drunk a hundred words  
Of thy tongue's utterance, yet I know the sound:  
Art thou not Romeo and a Montague?"

This whole conversation felt like it was not between two characters, but just between us. Just Edward and Bella. I wondered if he could sense it too; that I wasn't speaking to Romeo, but to him.

"Neither, fair saint, if either thee dislike."

I was about to recite the next line, when suddenly, a loud and furious clapping could be heard.

"Wonderful! That was absolutely wonderful! I think I've found our leads!"

Ms. Williams was completely gushing, and I could see that the other students in the auditorium were pleased as well. Even those who had auditioned as Romeo and Juliet before us were excited. I grinned. I couldn't believe I'd made it that far. This morning, I was so sure that I would screw up, but I didn't, and I was exceedingly proud of myself.

In my rush of excitement, I didn't see Edward leave the stage. I only noticed when I saw his figure retreating through the theater doors. I looked back to the audience once, and smiled to Ms. Williams before making my exit as well.

I found him in the lobby, his hand on the glass door of the performing arts building.

"Edward, wait!" I called, catching up to him.

His tall frame was ridged as he turned around.

"Bella," he said, "you should probably go home."

"No, I want to know what happened today. I don't get it. You've hardly ever spoken to me, and then what? You pulled that emotion out of a hat?"

"I was _acting_, Bella."

"No, you weren't. I could see it in your eyes." I briefly wondered if I was being too bold. He obviously didn't want to talk, but I didn't want to let him leave yet.

Something changed in his eyes. The fire died down. He gave up.

"So what if I wasn't? That doesn't change anything."

"Why not?" I asked, my voice thick with emotion. "It changes things for me."

"We can't be together," he said, looking away. His jaw clenched. "No matter how much I want to."

My eyes widened a bit at that. He admitted it.

"I get it," I said at last. "We're too different. We come from different worlds. I guess I just don't fit into yours."

I didn't understand why I felt so rejected. I had always liked Edward. That was true, but he was always forbidden, unexpected. It was like having a crush on a celebrity. You'd obsess over it sometimes, but it was completely impossible, and totally improbable. I never expected to get this far. Shouldn't I just be happy with that?

"That's not what I meant," his green eyes were brooding now, smoldering in the late afternoon sun. "My world is not for you. It's a place you shouldn't see, and I don't want to drag you into it."

With my confidence suddenly restored, I spoke again. "I don't care. Please believe that." I begged.

"You don't know what you're saying; you don't know anything." Though he was clearly angry, I couldn't stop myself from noticing again how soft, and sweet his voice was.

Then, suddenly, like I'd just found that last missing puzzle piece, the one that frustrates you to no end because you have to sit there looking at a picture with a hole in the middle, it all snapped into place.

I gasped. "It's all true, isn't it?"

He gave me a funny look.

"My father's a cop, you know- the Chief."

His eyes widened to an impossible size. "How did he find out? I was careful. So careful." He backed away from me then, looking afraid.

"He had a hunch, in the beginning. But he gave it up." I muttered. I was just so shocked that his was happening; that this was real. "Are you okay?"

He sighed. It looked like he was still freaking out. "Bella, I like you, a lot, maybe even love you," My heart stuttered at the word. "But," he paused, "my father, he's… dangerous."

I was shaking. "W- What do you mean?"

He paused for a moment, wincing. "My mother died when I was sixteen, just before I moved here. My father started," He paused again. "drinking. Just trying to ignore the pain, I guess. Now, he," Another pause. "well, he's got a really bad temper."

I shuddered, moving closer to him.

"I don't care," I repeated myself. "We can get through this together."

As I said this, I wrapped my arms around his waist, and buried my head in his chest. He froze for a moment, before he tilted my chin up, and touched his lips to mine. At first, the kiss was slow, as our lips meshed together. Then, of course, everything sped up when his tongue traced my lip, asking for entrance. I complied, and then the kiss skyrocketed into a burst of passion.

After a few minutes, we broke apart, both of us breathing heavily.

"I- I think I love you, Juliet." He murmured. I could feel the vibrations of his voice pass from his body to mine.

I hugged him tighter. "My Romeo."

There was a lot we'd have to figure out. I knew I couldn't let things continue the way they were. I'd have to talk to Edward, and Charlie about how to solve this terrible problem. But we'd get through it. I'd do what Juliet couldn't. I'd save my Romeo. I didn't know how, but I would. One thing was for sure though; I'd have to thank Alice, every day for the rest of my life. Maybe she really is psychic.

**A/N- Okay, this wasn't exactly the ending I had imagined, but I think it worked well. I wanted it to be sort of like Romeo and Juliet in real life, but I wasn't sure if I wanted it to go deeper than 'Edward and Bella just have different friends, and sit at different lunch tables'. Also, I didn't want Edward to be the bad guy. He's not bad, just trying to do anything he can to escape his real life. I realized about half way through, that the only way to achieve this was to make them different on another level. Which, is where Edward's insanely crappy life came from. I really hope you all enjoyed this, as it is my first all human story, so I am a little nervous.**

**-S.**


	2. AN- Getting Nervous

**AN- Hey guys, so, I'm a little sad by the lack of response to this story. This is my first all- human fic, and I'm really excited about it. Or, at least, I was. I know it's sort of big- headed of me to assume that all my stories will do well, but I honestly believe that this is my best work, or close to it. The idea was in my head for a while before I actually wrote it down, and then it spent an unnaturally long amount of time in the re-read/edit stage, which ended up making me quite nervous about how my first AH story would be received. **

**I don't know. Was it because I posted it sort of late at night? It was only like, ten. Did you guys not enjoy it? I thought that if that was the case, then I would at least have some negative reviews. Judging by the lack of response, I'm hoping that the email system is busted, or you guys just don't check that often, as at least sixty to seventy people should have been alerted to the update. Anyways, I hope you see this AN, and read my new story. **

**Also, I'd like to thank ****sujari6**** for being my one and only reviewer. I'm glad that you enjoyed it. I hope that everyone else will too.**

**-S.**


	3. Epilogue

**AN- It seems that my reviewers wanted to know what happens to Bella and Edward after the events of WIAN, so, I came up with an epilogue of sorts.**

I sat in front of the vanity mirror, scrutinizing my face for a moment. Alice had done everything beautifully, and I was sure that to everyone else, I looked like a different person. My makeup, which Alice had insisted upon, was in shades of soft pink, which almost made it look as if my face was glowing. I actually didn't mind it this time. The color went well with my dress; a white sundress that was covered in soft pink roses. My hair was left down in waves that swayed against my lower back.

A glance at the clock told me that was early, so I allowed myself to get lost in the memories. I did this often, which Edward always seemed to enjoy. He asked me once, why I kept getting lost in the past, why my mind was always somewhere else. My answer was simple. I didn't want to lose anything; not one moment of my perfect life.

_~Flashback~_

"_Well, I suppose that's it then," Charlie mumbled, taking another swig of his beer. He closed the file in one swift movement, and sealed it inside a manila folder, dropping it into a briefcase. "That creep won't be going anywhere any time soon."_

_I smiled as I set down our dinner plates. "Really?" I asked, elated. _

"_Yep, everything will be final just as soon as I drop the police report off at the station in the morning."_

_I grinned. "You do know that you're totally awesome, right?" _

_He snickered. "So I've been told," After a moment, he frowned though. "I just don't know what to do now. I mean, what's the kid going to do, all alone? I checked the bastard's file like twice, and he has no living relatives. I can't just let his son live on the streets."_

_I sighed. "We'll think of something. We have to."_

"_You're really brave, you know that, kid?" He didn't look at me as he said it though, almost as if he was embarrassed that he might not have known how to handle a situation like this, were he in my place._

"_I get that from him," I blushed. _

"_I can't even imagine," he muttered. "Living like that for so long. Probably one of the strongest teenagers I've ever seen."_

_I didn't want to talk about this anymore. All it was doing was bringing me down. "Well, I have some college money saved up. We'll go to UW, maybe rent an apartment there. We'll get jobs. I'm sure we'll manage."_

"_The Newton's don't pay you enough to both attend, do they?" he asked skeptically. _

"_No," I paused, "I don't make enough for that. But, at least it's a place to stay."_

"_Yeah, I guess you're right. Maybe you can help him look for a job," he paused. "You know, just for the summer, then, if you guys do end up leaving for school, you'll have some more money saved up."_

_I thought about that for a moment. I was sure that I could find Edward someplace to work. In fact, I was going to call up the Newton's in the morning, to see if they needed anymore help around the store._

"_There's always that bike, too." He thought for a second. "I'm sure that's worth quite a lot. It's a Harley, isn't it?"_

_I gasped. "No, there's no way he'd sell his bike." Charlie gave me a weird look at the way I had said that, as if it was the most important thing in the world. "His mother got him that, for his sixteenth birthday. It's the last thing he has of her." I mumbled sadly. "It was right before she… disappeared."_

"_I suppose that's out then, too, huh?"_

_I nodded. "I'll come up with something."_

_~End of Flashback~_

I smiled. Charlie was so understanding. We went to him the Saturday after rehearsals. He was skeptical at first, but, after Edward explained, gave a firsthand testimony, Charlie had no choice but to believe it. Later that night, he pulled me aside, into the yard, away from Edward, who was staying with us indefinitely, and asked me what exactly what was going on.

It was an awkward conversation, to say the least. What was I supposed to say? That we were in love? He was unaware that I had a boyfriend, which I didn't really; we were more than that, which made it even worse. It was every father's nightmare that his baby girl would use the "L" word when speaking about a guy, but I'm sure it was ten times worse when he was positive that she had only just met him. Of course, we'd known each other longer than that, but it was only the day before when we realized that we were in love.

I had then explained, very gently, to my father, that I was in "L" word, with Edward, and then he proceeded to turn purple. It took a moment for him to calm down, after I reminded him that only one wall separated us from Edward, and that it was important for him not to embarrass me in front of him.

It took Charlie a while to get used to the idea, and at first, he had set very strict rules in the house. We were to be supervised at all times. Edward slept on the couch, and only the couch. Kissing, to any degree besides small chaste pecks, was strictly forbidden. At least, if he _knew_ about it.

This wasn't permanent though, of which we were both aware. We didn't have enough space in our little house for Edward. And quite frankly, I was sure that Charlie couldn't take the idea that as long as we were in the same house, he might walk in on something he didn't want to see.

And that, is where the pixie entered.

_~Flashback~_

"_Oh, I know!" Alice exclaimed one day at lunch._

_We all sat together at our same old lunch table, only now, Edward was with us. It was the last week of school, and the race was on. We had to get things going, get the ball rolling, I suppose. Edward's father had been locked away, a subject that none of us liked to discuss, and as of right now, he was staying at my house, the old couch my mother bought before my parents separated had become his bed. It was a hard life, as he had no job yet, though we were looking, which meant absolutely no income on his part, except for what was left of his father's bank account, and as of late, Charlie had been struggling with money, due to the unexpected extra mouth to feed._

_Everyone was looking at Alice now, suspicious of her plan. _

"_Well," she said. "Mom and Dad just adore you." She put way too much emphasis on the word adore. "We have the extra space now, on account of Dad's promotion at the hospital. He's the head surgeon now, you know."_

_I looked at her like she was crazy now. There was no way that Carlisle and Esme would just take in another teenager. They already had to deal with Alice and Emmett, Rose and Jasper stayed over quite often, and I was no stranger either. _

"_Alice, that's ridiculous." I voiced my thoughts._

"_No it's not," she fired back. "You'll see," then she turned to look at Edward. "You'll have a new home by the end of the week, Brother." To say that I was surprised by her word choice was an understatement. I had no idea that the two of them were so close already, though, they did spend time together, when we stayed with the Cullens for any length of time. _

_After school, the strangest thing happened. We all went down to the Cullens' place, to follow through with Alice's crazy idea. I was all set, ready for the disappointment that was sure to come when Carlisle and Esme explained to us that they just couldn't afford it. _

_~End of Flashback~_

Surprisingly enough, that's not what happened at all. As it turns out, Esme had always wanted a big family, and she was saddened after she never got pregnant again after Alice and Emmett. When we told them of Alice's strange plan to procure another brother, they had welcomed him with open arms.

Not six months later, when Edward and I had returned to Forks to spend Christmas break with Charlie and the Cullens, that they surprised us with the news. Carlisle and Esme, bless their souls, had made the decision to adopt the nineteen year old college freshman. The first week of January, they had gone down to the courthouse in Port Angeles, and made it true.

He kept the strangest look on his face after that. Every time he looked at them, his _parents_, he just looked so happy. I can't imagine what it felt like, to be alone one minute, to suddenly having parents, real ones that didn't abuse you, and siblings; to have people that cared for you.

He now had a permanent room in the Cullen house, though it was unlikely that he would need it anytime soon. I had told Carlisle and Esme this once, and they had explained that they just wanted to make sure that he had a place that he could come back to, should he ever need to.

There was another reason why that Christmas was amazing. Now, I'm certainly not one to be greedy, or to expect things. I hate it when people spend money on me, or get me things, but I'm not going to lie, the reason that year was so perfect was the gift. I had argued many times that I didn't need anything, and that he didn't need to use his new parents' money on me, but he fired back, saying that yes, he did have to get me this, and no, he didn't spend any of Carlisle and Esme's money, _his_ money. He had reminded me that for his last birthday, they had gotten him a credit card linked to their account, and that he was allowed to use it as he pleased.

But, this was different, he'd said. He didn't spend a dime on it. It was Christmas morning, and we were all gathered around the Cullens' tree, in our pajamas, as per Emmett's instructions. He showed me a little black box. It wasn't wrapped, but it did have a bow on top of it. It was the type of box that jewelry came in. It was then, right in front of everyone, with the rising sun through the large windowed wall, that he asked me to be his forever.

Of course I'd agreed, saying yes about thirty times rather loudly. I'd only asked him later, on Christmas night, what he'd meant about not spending any money on the sparkling diamond ring. He explained to me that it was his mother's. He'd found it one day, hidden in a box in the hall closet of his parents' home in Chicago before they moved.

It was after that, after I'd shed a substantial amount of tears for this loving, sweet man, that we'd spent the rest of the night making love. It was slow, and filled to the brim with passion.

_~Flashback~_

_I was nervous, like really nervous. I wasn't sure what the root cause of it was. Maybe it was that I might trip and fall on my face thanks to Alice's deathtraps. That's what I called my white stilettos behind her back. Maybe I was afraid that I would stutter, or that I would get lost in his eyes again and forget what to say. That one was a little ridiculous though. We'd opted for traditional, so I didn't have to memorize anything. I was just freaking out._

_Alice came dancing into the room then, a large bouquet in her hands._

"_You ready?" She asked excitedly. _

"_I feel like I'm going to lose my breakfast, Alice."_

_She laughed at me. "You know, you said those same words more than four years ago, and look at where you are now."_

_She was right. I gazed in the mirror again. My white dress was long, and fell into a train behind me. It was covered in a beautiful lace. The dress itself was sleeveless, but the lace went up to cover my upper chest, and my neck. The lace also covered my arms to form three quarter length see-through sleeves. I did look rather beautiful. _

"_It's starting now?" I asked for confirmation._

_She nodded. "Charlie's standing right outside."_

_I stood on shaky legs, and she handed me the bouquet._

_Some parts of that day were a blur. I didn't quite remember Charlie take my hand and lead me to the backyard. The decorations, the way the ceremony was set up, was all a bit foggy. The part I remembered the most was Edward's shining emerald eyes. As I thought, I did get lost in them, but I didn't miss any of my cues, thank god._

_The day was perfect; the day we got married, and I wouldn't change one moment of it._

_~End of Flashback~_

That was one of the best days of my life. Everything was so perfect, thanks to Alice. She was the one to plan it.

After the ceremony, we spent practically all day partying. The Cullens had set up a dance floor, and had hired a band. The reception was outside, and we'd had lunch next to the stage, as we watched people give little speeches.

Edward had made me dance of course, though neither of us was very good. We twirled around, laughing as we stepped on each others' toes. Alice told me later that it was quite funny to watch. Dancing with my dad was even worse though. He _really _didn't know what he was doing.

It truly was a perfect day.

Our honeymoon had been a mystery location, thanks to my dear husband, so, as we drove to the airport, I spent my time trying to wrap my head around the fact that I was married. I studied my engagement ring as we went, with my shiny new wedding band on top of it. It was an amazing feeling, to be Mrs. Isabella Marie Masen Cullen. It was like a dream come true.

It turns out, that our honeymoon destination had been Hawaii. We spent three weeks lounging on the beaches of Maui, just enjoying each other's company. There was another surprise waiting for us in Maui, though I didn't know it.

It was quite unexpected, though I was so very happy at the news.

_~Flashback~_

_I was sitting unnaturally still, staring, mesmerized, in front of me. It was amazing to believe that it was real, but I knew that it was. All the signs were there. I had been rather tired as of late, for the past couple of days, the mornings brought nausea with them, and to top in all off, there, on the sink in front of me, was a little white stick, with a plus sign on it. _

_For a brief moment, I was terrified. We had just returned from our honeymoon a week ago. We were still staying with Carlisle and Esme for the remainder of the break and we were supposed to go back to college together at the end of the summer, which was in a couple of weeks. We were going to be starting our soft more year. Now I was pregnant. How were we ever going to manage that?_

_I was knocked out of my internal freak out when Edward walked into the room._

"_Juliet?" he called. He had never gotten over calling me that._

_I exited the bathroom slowly, keeping the offending white stick safely behind my back. He looked at me for only a second. I was so sure that he could tell that something was wrong, and when he voiced that, I moved over the bed, and sat down. With my right hand, (my left was still safely behind my back) I motioned for him to sit with me._

"_I have some news," I choked out once he was sitting next to me._

"_Are you alright?" he asked, getting worried._

"_I'm fine, just a little surprised."_

_He looked at me strangely, urging me to continue._

"_You know how I've been feeling kind of sick lately?"_

_He nodded. I moved the pregnancy test from behind my back. He eyed it in surprise. _

"_Congratulations, daddy."_

_He didn't speak for a moment, and I turned to see tears leaking from the corner of his eye._

_~End of Flashback~_

I was thrown from my musings as someone knocked at the door.

"Yes?" I called, taking one last look at myself, and then turning towards my bedroom door. The door swung open, and my little girl came in. Her green eyes, her father's green eyes lit up when she saw me.

"Mommy, mommy, look! We match!" she exclaimed when she caught sight of me. She was indeed wearing a little white dress with pink flowers on it, just like mine. It went with her hair, I thought. It was curly, like Charlie's, only it was the strange reddish brown color, like her fathers.

"Yes we do," I agreed. "Your auntie dressed you up, didn't she?"

She nodded furiously. "Oh," she said, as if suddenly remembering something. "Nana and Poppa are here."

I nodded, before swooping down to pick her up.

Downstairs, it was a mess of people, my father, Carlisle and Esme, Alice and Jasper, Emmett and Rose. When we got to the bottom of the steps, Edward came into the room, hiding a cake behind his back. I watched as he set it on the counter in a sneaky way as to not draw our daughter's attention, and joined us at the foot of the stairs.

Esme came forward then, her arms outstretched for her granddaughter. As I passed her off to Esme, Edward wrapped his arm around my waist.

"Happy birthday, Juliet," Esme gushed, as she hugged onto my daughter.

We moved into the living room to talk after a minute. Everyone sat around as Juliet seemed to magically go from one person's lap to another.

When she got back to us, she smiled, curling up on Edward's lap. After a moment, she said, "Daddy, I saw cake, is it for me?"

Everyone laughed at that, though Edward's stood out the most.

"In a minute, Julie. Your mother and I have something for you first."

She grinned happily. "Presents?"

"Just one," Edward told her. "You'll get the others later."

He pulled the small box from beside him on the couch, and handed it to her.

Once it was open, she gaped at the shiny silver locket in awe. "What does it say, Daddy?"

He looked at her lovingly. "It says, 'That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.' It's a line from a play your mother and I enjoy. It means that, no matter what, you'll always be special."

I smiled, and leaned my head on Edward's shoulder. Everything was perfect now.

**AN- I hope this answers your questions as to Edward and Bella's future. I liked it; it was fun to write. And yes, Edward insisted upon the name Juliet for their daughter. I also thought it would be fitting if her middle name in Elizabeth, for Edward's mother. I hope you liked it.**

**-S.**


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